Shahram Homayoun ( fa, شهرام همایون) is an Iranian political dissident, political activist, and the owner of "Channel one," a

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

n satellite TV station based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

that broadcasts into Iran daily.

Exile

Shahram Homayoun fled Iran for the United States in 1991. He was a marked man in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, because he supported democracy and human rights and his opposition to the Iranian government. He has resided in

ever since. While in Iran he was the Editor of the "Hamkari" Magazine for two years, Editor of Kargaran (Workers) Magazine for three years, Associate Editor of the daily "Bamdad" (morning) Newspaper for two years. His famous interviews were with Sadegh Ghotbzadeh, Sadegh Khalkhali, Ahmad Khomeini (the son of Ayatollah Khomeini), Ayatollah Shariatmadari, Ayatollah Sadegh Rohani,

Yasser Arafat Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...

and President of Pakistan General Zia ul Haq.

Interpol Arrest Warrant

According to the Iranian government, Mr. Homayoun "encouraged his audience to engage in acts of terrorism against the Islamic government such as writing slogans (on walls) and resisting the security forces." Independent observers accuse the Iranian government of using Interpol to target political dissidents abroad. Despite Interpol's "Red Notice" against Homayoun, however,

The Federal Bureau of Investigation ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

has assured him that he would be safe as long as he remains in the United States.

Activities

Homayoun has established a Persian satellite TV network based in Los Angeles that broadcasts 24/7 into Iran. The TV channel, named "Channel One," includes programs by Homayoun himself as well as other dissidents and political activists such as Alireza Nourizadeh and Mohsen Sazegara. Abbas Pahlevan, Dr. Danesh Foroughi, Dr. Hassan Rahnavardi, and Dr. Manouchehr Ganji. He has also started the ''Ma Hastim'' movement, which, according to some analysts, has had a "significant influence on Iranian masses," as seen by the "numerous slogans" written on Iran's city walls in its support. He organized alongside other political organizations daily demonstrations in Los Angeles during the 2009 Green Movement in Iran. His TV station and Ma Hastim were instrumental in keeping the Los Angeles demonstrations strong and provided the Western media with all the news coming out of Iran during those days. Recently the ''Ma Hastim'' movement, funded by its supporters, built a symbolic cemetery in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

containing symbolic graves and tombstones of Iranian dissidents and political activists, such as

Neda Agha Soltan Neda may refer to: People * Neda (musician) (Tenielle Neda, born 1987), an Australian singer-songwriter * Ana-Neda, Empress consort of Bulgaria 1323–1324 * Musaed Neda (born 1983), Kuwaiti footballer * Neda Agha-Soltan (1983–2009), shot dea ...

, killed by the Iranian government since 2009.

Views

Homayoun supports Iranian/Persian nationalism and has been instrumental in keeping Iran's rightful/historical flag, the "Lion and Sun," flying high. This historical flag differentiates between the Islamic Republic's opposition and its cronies. He supports regime change in Iran and believes that the government in Iran should be treated "like South Africa during the apartheid where they were banned from all international organizations, where their sports teams were boycotted, and its officials couldn't travel to the West, and most importantly how their ruling classes assets were seized and frozen abroad."

References

External links

Channel One Official WebsiteShahram Homayoun Official Website"Ma Hastim" Movement Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Homayoun, Shahram Iranian television personalities Iranian exiles Iranian activists Iranian democracy activists Iranian dissidents Living people Iranian escapees Iranian emigrants to the United States Year of birth missing (living people)